Approach
Our approach is shaped by a simple principal; design should make a positive difference to people’s lives.
Architecture shapes the world around us; we focus on creating designs that are inclusive, sustainable, and connected to the communities they serve. We act with honesty and care, approaching every project with craftsmanship and innovation, delivering practical solutions that are built to last. Every project is important to us, our creativity, technical expertise, and thoughtful attention to detail, ensures our work is consistent, purposeful, and makes a real difference to the people who interact with it.
We work alongside our clients to bring projects to life that work for people, places, and the environment. Our architects, technologists, and project leads combine creativity with practical expertise to design buildings and spaces that feel right for their context, the people who use them, and the communities around them. From interiors and landscapes to masterplans and public spaces, we focus on collaboration, care, and attention to detail, keeping safety, sustainability, and buildability at the heart of everything we do. The result is thoughtful, welcoming, and resilient spaces that leave a positive impact on everyone who experiences them.
Our Services
We want to help our clients bring projects to life in ways that work technically, socially, environmentally, and financially. We offer a full range of architectural and design services, from masterplanning and building design to interiors, landscapes, and public spaces. By using BIM and digital tools, we keep even the most complex projects coordinated, reduce risk, and make sure our ideas are practical and buildable at every stage.
Safety and sustainability are at the heart of everything we do. As Principal Designers, we guide projects through CDM and Building Safety requirements and take a fabric-first, low-carbon approach to ensure our buildings are resilient, efficient, and responsible. Our experience with heritage, reuse, and conservation, allows us to retain and enhance existing character while bringing spaces back to life, creating useable, sustainable spaces for clients. By focusing on careful planning, clear communication, and attention to detail, we deliver projects that work well for the people who use them and the communities they belong to.
We recognise the urgency of the climate and biodiversity emergency and the responsibility architects have to respond through everyday decisions, from early concept design through to delivery and occupation. Our focus is on making genuine, measurable improvements in carbon performance and resource use through practical, evidence-informed design that responds to each project’s context, scale and brief.
From early-stage advice to full delivery, we work closely with our clients, listening, testing ideas, and building confidence to ensure that every project has a lasting, positive impact.
Climate Leadership
Sustainability is embedded in everything we do, from day-to-day practice to long-term strategy. We work closely with our clients to set clear environmental goals from the outset, guiding projects through design, construction, and beyond with low-carbon, resource-efficient, and environmentally conscious solutions. Using BIM, performance testing, and passive design strategies, we create buildings and spaces that minimise energy use, reduce waste, and enhance the health and wellbeing of the people who use them.
Our knowledge of sustainability, heritage conservation, and Modern Methods of Construction, allows us to deliver practical, resilient, and adaptable solutions that meet technical, social, and environmental objectives. Through careful monitoring, auditing, and post-occupancy evaluation, we ensure that our sustainability targets are met and lessons are captured for future projects. Beyond individual projects, we actively reduce the carbon footprint of our operations, engage our teams in low-carbon practices, and track our social and environmental impact across communities and supply chains.
Our approach blends creativity, technical skill, and sustainable thinking to deliver environments that work well, feel welcoming, and are built to last.
Social Value
We believe architecture should leave a positive mark on people, communities, and the environment. From the very start of a project, we listen to local communities, end users, and stakeholders to make sure their priorities and lived experiences shape our designs. This approach helps us create inclusive and inspiring spaces that enhance wellbeing and deliver long-term social, environmental, and economic value for our clients and the communities our projects sit within.
As an Employee Owned Trust DLA is shaped by the people who work here, our people are actively involved in the success of our business, regularly taking part in volunteering, fundraising and local initiatives. We invest in our people through flexible, inclusive working, learning opportunities, and wellbeing support, while opening doors to the profession with placements for apprentices, students, and young people exploring careers in architecture and construction. We are also proud cornerstone partners of LandAid, helping end youth homelessness through volunteering, fundraising, and pro bono support.
Across all projects, we focus on delivering measurable social value. Using our Social Value Platform, we track outcomes and show the positive, long-term impact our work creates for clients and communities. By embedding social value in everything we do, we create places that make a meaningful difference for everyone who experiences them.
